The Nigerian equities market closed marginally higher as investors maintained a cautious stance amid the ongoing release of fourth-quarter earnings for the 2025 financial year.
Trading on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) reflected a mildly bullish tone, supported by selective bargain hunting, even as overall market momentum appeared restrained. Several listed companies released their financial results during Monday’s session, shaping trading patterns across key sectors.
Market analysts noted that the modest demand for select stocks helped lift headline indicators slightly, despite subdued turnover. The NGX All-Share Index (ASI) edged up by 0.003 per cent to close at 165,517.56 points, signalling guarded optimism among market participants.
A closer look at trading activity revealed mixed dynamics. Total transaction volume declined by 17.77 per cent to 601.64 million shares, while the total value of trades dropped by 9.16 per cent to ₦17.30 billion.
Despite the lower volume and value, investor participation strengthened, with the total number of deals rising sharply by 32.78 per cent to 58,429. This suggests heightened interest and repositioning by investors, even as they remained cautious in deploying capital.
Market breadth closed slightly negative at 0.97x, as 36 stocks declined compared to 35 gainers, reflecting a balanced but mildly bearish sentiment.
Among the top gainers for the session were NPF Microfinance Bank, Morison Industries, UPDC REIT, Deap Capital Management, and SCOA Nigeria. These stocks recorded price appreciations of 10.00 per cent, 9.97 per cent, 9.95 per cent, 9.94 per cent, and 9.87 per cent, respectively, driven by renewed investor interest.
On the losing side, May & Baker Nigeria, Neimeth Pharmaceuticals, ABC Transport, CWG, and Sovereign Trust Insurance led the decliners’ chart, posting the steepest price losses during the trading session.
Sectoral performance painted a mixed picture, underscoring the cautious tone of the market. The Consumer Goods Index advanced by 0.16 per cent, while the Banking and Industrial Goods indices recorded modest gains of 0.02 per cent and 0.01 per cent, respectively.
In contrast, the Oil and Gas sector retreated by 0.04 per cent, while the Insurance Index fell sharply by 1.40 per cent, emerging as the worst-performing sector for the day. The Commodity Index closed flat, indicating limited trading activity within the segment.
Overall, total market capitalisation rose slightly by ₦3.45 billion to ₦105.96 trillion, reflecting the marginal improvement in equity prices.
Market watchers expect trading patterns to remain sensitive to corporate earnings releases, macroeconomic signals, and portfolio rebalancing activities as investors assess valuations and earnings outlooks for the remainder of the year.
